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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/23385613">Worry</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Neverever/pseuds/Neverever'>Neverever</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Avengers Assemble (Cartoon)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Covid-19 Related, Fear, Health Issues, M/M, Pandemics, immuno-compromised, social distancing</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-03-30</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-03-30</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-01 15:15:37</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>2,419</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/23385613</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Neverever/pseuds/Neverever</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>During the pandemic, Steve wants help the best he can but immuno-compromised Tony worries about his company and his health.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Steve Rogers/Tony Stark</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>14</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>214</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Collections:</b></td><td>Lock Down Fest</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Worry</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“Get out of the way! Stand down!” Steve yelled as he broke down the door. A sharp blow from the shield and a well-placed kick and he was in. </p><p>He stormed through the debris, adrenaline pumping through his veins and his brain taking in situational awareness. He suddenly stopped short. Tony, racing in behind him, slammed into his back and they tumbled down onto the travertine tile floor. </p><p>Steve quickly freed his legs and arm from under Tony’s armor. Rolling onto his back, he tore off the cowl and looked up at  the plain white ceiling. “This is not an AIM facility,” he announced.</p><p>“Not unless AIM is into running Napa Valley B&amp;Bs all of a sudden,” Tony agreed. “Might be more Hammer’s thing.”</p><p>“AIM has to be here -- FRIDAY told us --” </p><p>Confused, Steve looked around the hallway that opened onto a large living room with brown leather couches, off-white woven rugs, and a glass and metal coffee table with a bottle of wine on it. The windows had a spectacular view of mountains and the valley below, dotted with vineyards.</p><p>Definitely not an AIM facility, which, come to think of it, were mostly in low-rent warehouse districts or industrial parks. Steve sighed. He should have caught on sooner when Tony and he landed in the driveway. FRIDAY must have gotten some poor intel. </p><p>It had been a risk to do this mission in the first place, given the current situation with the covid-19 pandemic. </p><p>“Where’s the rest of the team?” Tony asked. </p><p>Steve stood up and helped Tony to his feet. “Hawkeye, Widow, Falcon?” Steve said into the comms. </p><p>“Cap, we got you,” Hawkeye radioed back.</p><p>The slight lag over the comms told Steve and Tony that their teammates were not close behind them. Probably not even within 50 miles of the B&amp;B.</p><p>Steve exchanged a weary look with Tony. “Where are you, Hawkeye? Iron Man and I landed a few minutes ago.” Steve and Tony had been in Los Angeles for Stark Industries’ business and had the spare Avengejet. </p><p>“Yeah, about that -- we’re in New York,” Clint drawled over the comms.</p><p>“What?” Tony said.</p><p>“The team talked about it, and you’re better off there than here. So vacation away. Place is paid for, there’s plenty of food, extra clothes in the master bedroom.”</p><p>“HAVE YOU LOST YOUR GODDAMNED MIND? WHERE IS SAM?” Tony yelled.</p><p>Steve wandered over to the bottle of wine and read the note. It was a lovely letter from the B&amp;B owners about the history of the house and a wish that they would have a great time, with a booklet about the house amenities, local attactrations, and emergency information.</p><p>He had to admit that he was tempted to sit out on the patio. The owners had even installed heat lamps in case it got nippy outside. Not that he’d need a heat lamp if Tony were sitting with him.</p><p>No. This was ridiculous -- they had to return ASAP to New York. New York was in crisis. They’d have to leave soon since it was already early afternoon back home.</p><p>“Sam, what in the fresh hell is going on?” Tony snapped.</p><p>“Um, yeah, there is --”</p><p>“Tony,” Natasha interrupted. “We planned this before the coronavirus.”</p><p>“Yeah, well, we’re coming back. Lots for the team to do.”</p><p>“Actually, no. We’re the alien-fighting response team, not the virus-fighting team. Although Bruce is working on something with SHIELD.”</p><p>“Right.” </p><p>“The situation in New York is shifting rapidly, mayor and governor are telling people to stay home. By the time you get back here, we might be in complete shutdown.”</p><p>“Right.”</p><p>“Honestly, do you think it’s good idea for you to be in New York right now or anywhere near people who aren’t Steve?”</p><p>Tony sighed deeply as he toed the door debris into a pile next to the wall. “Steve and I are going to talk. Then we’ll tell you the plan.”</p><p>Steve took the comm out of his ear. “We have to go back, Tony.”</p><p>Tony took the helmet off. “Look, I have to talk to Pepper. See what’s going on with Stark Industries. I’d made some plans -- we have to replace that door before we go -- need to focus.”</p><p>He stripped out of his armor, piled it up and went into a side sitting room to make calls. At a loss, Steve stood in the hallway watching his boyfriend morph into Tony Stark, CEO of Stark Industries.</p><p>“Hey, Pepper, what’s going on? Yep, still in California. Right. Right. We had plans in place -- okay. Let’s get everyone on a conference call.” Tony glanced up at Steve. “Hey, could you get my Tom Ford suit and a nice tie out of the Avengejet?”</p><p>“Yeah, sure.”</p><p>“It’s going to be awhile. See you on the patio later?”</p><p>“Yeah.”</p><p>Steve wandered through the house, not sure what to do. He found that Natasha and Sam had shipped some clothes from New York in luggage waiting in the master suite. They had even included books and art supplies for Steve. Packed before the pandemic was declared.</p><p>The uniform was starting to chafe so he changed into a shirt and jeans. He looked at the ruins of the door, wondering what they could improvise to block the empty door frame. Plywood or a panel from the Avengejet. </p><p>They weren’t staying so he wasn’t going to unpack. But he didn’t know when they would be able to leave either. He finally decided to go outside and read on the patio, out from under Tony’s feet. Catch up on all the news.</p><p>This all felt completely surreal to Steve. Sitting with his tablet in the afternoon sunlight felt so normal compared to knowing that a pandemic was spreading through the country. He was restless, wanting more news, but there was nothing new. And the news tended to make Steve’s blood boil with anger.</p><p>He could do something. He needed to do something. People were out there hurting.</p><p>“Hey, I’m done for now,” Tony announced from the doorway. “On a short tether.” He waved his phone at Steve. “I’ll grab some food from the kitchen.”</p><p>Tony brought out a tray with a bottle of wine, glasses, crackers, cheese, nuts and clementines. “Clint was not kidding about the pantry being stocked to the gills.” He’d changed into a long-sleeved t-shirt and jeans. </p><p>“What’s going on?” Steve asked.</p><p>“Stable.” Tony sighed. “Stark Industries is good for a few weeks. No one is going to lose their job -- work from home, paid time off, whatever it takes.”</p><p>“We’ll stay tonight and head back tomorrow early?”</p><p>Tony handed Steve a glass of wine. “It’s not beer. We’re in Napa, so it’s wine.” He sipped his own glass. “An excellent wine at that.”</p><p>“Tony.”</p><p>“Steve.”</p><p>“When are we going back?”</p><p>Tony closed his eyes and drew a deep breath. His face was pinched in that way he always had when he was about to have an argument with Steve. Okay, Steve was going to have to be careful.</p><p>“It’s not a good idea, Steve. This virus -- the covid thing -- it’s -- it’s not a good idea. Pepper said that the Tower isn’t secure and there’s no widespread testing. Yeah. This is the best place for me -- far, far away from anyone. Except you. You can’t get sick.”</p><p>“We could help.”</p><p>“We could, until I got sick. It’s contagious, this virus, and assuming we could find something to help with, I could get it.”</p><p>Steve drank his wine, mulling over what Tony was trying to sell him on. His urge to punch something, anything, until things got better overwhelmed him. </p><p>“I don’t -- um.” Tony’s voice faltered. “I don’t want to put anyone in the position to choose whether or not to save my life over someone else’s.  Because I’m not a good health bet and they should pick the person that has better odds for a ventilator.” He smiled grimly as he tapped the arc reactor.</p><p>“The suit has a ventilation system.” </p><p>“But I can’t really wear the armor 24/7/365 or in the hospital.”</p><p>Steve shifted in his chair to get a better look at Tony, who was looking at his hands in his lap. He couldn’t see quite what Tony was getting at. Tony was always in the best of health in Steve’s eyes, bright-faced and energetic. If there was anything wrong with Tony, it was only the crippling coffee addiction. </p><p>Tony tapped the arc reactor again and shifted uneasily in his chair.</p><p>Steve replied, “You risk your life every time we fight HYDRA or AIM or Doombots. We have an infirmary at the Tower.”</p><p>“As a team, we can handle cuts, dislocated shoulders, broken bones, concussions. Not pneumonia that needs specialized medical treatment.” Tony reached for the bowl of nuts. Then stopped and looked quizzically at Steve. “Tell me -- have you forgotten all my considerable health problems because of the arc reactor?”</p><p>Steve froze. There was no good answer. “We never talked about it. As one of the team leaders, I’m aware that there is an issue.” </p><p>Tony sat up straight and opened his mouth. Then shut his mouth. “No, you’re right. We haven’t talked about it. Not since we started dating.”</p><p>“Living together.”</p><p>“Yeah, that.” Tony paused thoughtfully. “Steve.” Tony’s voice cracked in a way that made Steve sit up at attention. “The arc reactor makes -- I’m in a high risk group. I have reduced lung capacity. I’m immuno-compromised, the whole nine yards. If you knew the full extent, you would have benched me.”</p><p>Steve had to think about it. “You were Iron Man before I ever met you. I wouldn’t have benched you for that. You know what’s best for you.”</p><p>“And what’s best for me is sitting right here.”</p><p>Steve rolled around in his mind what this meant for Tony. “You risk your life all the time, we could have been killed a dozen different times.”</p><p>“I have control over that -- I choose to fight and am willing to take those risks. I don’t have control over a virus I could pick up from the barista in the Tower lobby or a guy holding the door open.”</p><p>“So staying here is the best option?”</p><p>“I don't think I'm going to get anything from you. But I’m not considering this a vacation from life. I have work to do. If I leave Stark Industries to the mercy of the Board, lots of people are going to suffer. I can’t do that to the people who work for the company.”</p><p>“I don’t have anything to do.” Steve winced at the plaintive tone of his voice but didn’t take it back.</p><p>“So you’re not counting keeping me in snacks and water while I’m on conference calls work?” Tony nudged Steve playfully until he drew a laugh from him. “You’re not a doctor. You don’t get sick, but we don't know if you might still be able to spread the disease.”</p><p>“I’m not someone who can just sit and wait.”</p><p>“Do it for me. Please, Steve.” Tony bit his lower lip and cast his eyes downward. “Or you can go and leave me here. I won’t keep you if you need to be elsewhere.”</p><p>Steve could hear the tears in Tony’s voice and felt like he’d been punched in the gut. He was torn between his desperate need to help and his desire to help Tony. “I’m … going for a run. I’ll be back for dinner.”</p><p>He couldn’t have asked for more beautiful scenery for his run. Steve went for a long run up and down the narrow twisting mountain roads. His mind cleared as the anger, fear and frustration burnt away. </p><p>He loved Tony. Tony was such a part of him that he couldn’t tell where he started and Tony ended.</p><p>And the idea of losing Tony devastated him. </p><p>He had known too many people who had lost someone during the 1918 Flu Epidemic and the shared grief too many families had. He didn’t want to be at a memorial service for Tony and listen to condolences.</p><p>It went against every fiber of his being to sit and not do anything. There were things he might be able to do from the vacation house, considering that Tony was battling to help people from his phone and laptop.</p><p>The plan came together quickly after that. </p><p>He rounded the corner and ran down the long and wide driveway, past the Avengejet. Tony was measuring the front door when Steve returned. Steve stopped to appreciate the view of Tony stretching up and down to get the right measurements.</p><p>“I got distracted and didn’t start dinner,” Tony said as he wrapped up the measuring tape.</p><p>Steve said nothing and swept Tony up into his arms. “I love you,” he said as he kissed Tony’s face.</p><p>“Not the answer I expected,” Tony confessed. “But this is better.”</p><p>“I’m going to take a shower. You find a frozen pizza or two.”</p><p>When Steve returned downstairs, Tony was setting out pizzas on the dining room table. Steve could feel the nervousness rolling off Tony. He put his hand on Tony’s arm. “I’m not leaving.”</p><p>Tony did a double-take. “You’re not?”</p><p>“No.”</p><p>“Hmmm, I should have guessed. Frozen pizza isn’t exactly the last-meal-with-the-one-you-love material.”</p><p>He kissed Tony’s forehead. “I have a plan.”</p><p>They sat down at the large table, designed for dinner parties, not for two people sharing pizza. Steve told Tony his plan about making PSA videos for the Avengers’ social media accounts. “Nothing big, just videos about washing hands, staying home.”</p><p>Tony beamed at him. “The Avengers PR team will be all over this. I’ll turn you over to them.”</p><p>“I can’t lose you, Tony.”</p><p>Tony nodded. “Well, I am the guy with the amazing tower and I make a mean guacamole dip.”</p><p>Steve snorted and had another slice of pizza. “What are your plans?”</p><p>“I’ll send the Avengejet to a hanger. We’ll need to rig something up for the front door tonight -- I have an order in for a new door to be delivered tomorrow by drone. I have a lot of conference calls.”</p><p>“About that shower --”</p><p>“It’s fantastic, isn’t it? Better than our suite back at the tower.” He leaned in closer to Steve, giving him that seductive smile that got Steve to do nearly anything for Tony. “And we need to break in that bed in our room.”</p><p>“How about now?” Steve asked, as he yanked a laughing Tony over his shoulder and ran up the stairs.</p>
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